Residents near Fix on I-196 work complain about noise, shaking: 'I felt like the house was gonna fall down'

Dave Odette | The Grand Rapids PressLoud bridge removal projects along I-196 are generating complaints from neighbors. View photo galleryGRAND RAPIDS -- Sheryl Bos has never experienced an earthquake, but figures she's come close enough after the overnight sounds of I-196 construction crews destroying the Coit Avenue NE bridge was so loud that it shook her bed.

The thunderous clamor of cranes ripping through bridge concrete is shaking homes, spooking pets, and leaving Bos and her Northeast Side neighbors with little sleep from midnight to 5 a.m., when bridge demolition work occurs.

"It just started getting louder and louder," Bos, 25, said of Monday morning's noise. "Usually I can sleep through the night. But the house just started shaking."

She and her roommate live less than a quarter-mile from one of several bridges being replaced in the $40 million, 1.75-mile project to widen and rebuild I-196. The highway is closed starting at College Avenue.

The rude awakening began well before dawn Monday.

"I felt like the house was gonna fall down," said Melanie Hoolsema,Bos' roommate. "I didn't sleep for any consecutive hours."

Neighbors will have to put up with the noise for a few more nights.

Demolition work is set to resume around midnight Tuesday and end by 5 a.m. Wednesday on the Coit and Eastern avenues bridges, Michigan Department of Transportation spokesman John Richard said. A second phase of demolition for Coit is set for the first week of June.

Demolition of the Lafayette Avenue bridges begins Tuesday night around midnight. Completion is set for 5 a.m. Friday, with a second phase of demolition in late July.

Construction crews are demolishing at night because it's safer than daytime work, Richard said. Nearby streets are typically empty and there's less chance of a bystander being injured, he said.

"Sure it's an inconvenience," he said. "But safety beats that out every time."

While many people were caught off guard by the magnitude of the noise, Grand Rapids city leaders said neighborhood residents were notified of the work in several mailings sent by the city and MDOT, as well as invited to a public hearing last year.

"I don't think anybody, until the construction starts, really knows how loud it's going to be," said Tiiu Arrak, spokeswoman for the Grand Rapids city engineer's office. "The good thing about it, those really loud activities are really (going to be) short lived.

"If we didn't do this at night this project would go on so much longer."

Coit Avenue resident Emily Badhorn, 24, was awakened by the construction when her bed started shaking early Monday. Not only has the construction disrupted her sleep, it also has lengthened her work commute from six to 20 minutes and disrupted her running routine.

"My friend sent me a text asking 'Are we living in an earthquake?'" Badhorn said. "It was just frustrating."

The noise did not generate any complaints from patients or doctors at nearby Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital, spokesman Bruce Rossman said.

"We are kind of monitoring the whole construction situation and will react accordingly if need be," he said. "So far it's not really an issue."

Despite the monstrous noise, the first day of the construction project, dubbed by MDOT as The Fix on I-196, largely went off without a hitch, Richard said. Motorists reported delays of no more than 20 minutes, no major accidents or fender benders were reported, and traffic appeared to run smoothly for much of the day.